Asesino sin nombre

Capítulo 73

After a moment of silence, Shengxiang said, "Once you enter the world of martial arts, it's like falling into a deep sea..."

Rong Yin stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the sky outside the flower-lined corridor. "How many times in life can one truly turn back?"

Shengxiang laughed. "I'm back, that's all. Why are you thinking so much? Li Lingyan and Jiang Chenming are indeed both severely injured, at least for a long time they won't rebel, isn't that good? Why are you frowning?" He plucked a leaf that had turned red in autumn, glanced sideways at the cleaned lotus pond in the courtyard, and shot it out. The leaf landed on the last surviving lotus leaf, like a tile in a mischievous child's hand. Shengxiang looked at his masterpiece with pride, his interest piqued. The look of desolation in his eyes faded, and he seemed to have never experienced the vicissitudes of life, always smiling.

Rong Yin gazed at him for a moment. Was it that in the past, in the distant past, the Sheng Xiang whom everyone thought would never grow up, was reborn again and again... through fire? "You've lost weight," Rong Yin said simply.

Shengxiang said in a serious tone, "That's because you've gained weight."

Rong Yin was taken aback, but not too surprised. Instead, he smiled faintly and said, "The news from Ze Ning's side has come. I heard that he sealed off Mo Qu Manor. However, when he went there, he did not see Liu Ji or Li Lingyan. Liu Shi left behind an empty manor."

"Yes, we escaped. Pu Shidong is dead. For Liu Ji, leaving that place is the safest option."

Rong Yin did not answer for a while before saying, "Tomorrow, Mei Niang invites you to Bai Tao Tang for sweet soup. Yu Xiu has something to say to you."

Before Shengxiang could answer, a dignified-looking man walked past from the other end of the courtyard. Rong Yin took a step back and hid behind a pillar. He had faked his death and resigned from his post, not wanting his friends who served in the same court to see that he was still alive. Seeing Shengxiang in the flower corridor from afar, Zhao Xiang pretended not to see her and strode past.

Shengxiang watched Zhao Xiang walk away, her eyes utterly silent. Rong Yin said calmly, "Aren't you going to chase after him?"

“We’ve caught up. What are we going to say…” Shengxiang turned to Rongyin and made a face at him, then said with a nonchalant smile, “My second brother is like an ox. I’m afraid he won’t forgive me until the day I die.”

"Does he still hate you?" Rong Yin knew that Zhao Pu's doting on Sheng Xiang had caused discord between his eldest and second sons and the family, leading them to leave home in anger.

Saint stuck out his tongue and corrected, "Of course he still hates me—he hates me when I was three and he was seven, when my father gave me the little dog in his room to play with—this is an irreconcilable hatred, you will never know how serious, terrible and deep that hatred is." After saying this, he smiled and it was hard to tell whether he was telling the truth or not.

Rong Yin stopped interrupting and stood silently for a while before saying indifferently, "Recently, a lot of things have happened in the martial arts world, causing quite a stir. I heard that the elders of the Eleven Sects have suddenly appeared and returned to the martial arts world, while praising a young hero surnamed Yu."

He spoke calmly, and Shengxiang nodded repeatedly. “A young hero like him who does good deeds without leaving his name is indeed extraordinary. I suggest that these elders of the martial arts world create a ‘Martial Arts Token’ or something similar that can command heroes, as a token of respect, to give to this great hero.”

Rong Yin remained expressionless. "Yesterday, they forged a Puyang Blade at the site of the Junshan Gathering, inscribed with the four seal characters 'A Gentleman's Righteousness,' intending to present it to this young hero surnamed Yu. If needed, this hero surnamed Yu can indeed command all the disciples of the eleven sects with this blade." His gaze fixed on Shengxiang remained unchanged. "This is true."

"Pfft—cough cough...No way?" Shengxiang choked on her words. "Really?"

“Wudang, Shaolin, and Emei didn’t follow suit with such nonsense, and there are eleven other sects in total,” Rong Yin said calmly. “However, this Master Yu did not appear at the sword-granting ceremony, and it is still unclear how this matter will be resolved.”

Shengxiang said with a smile, "That's because the great hero Yu went home to deal with the 'Jianghu demons.' This time, the green bamboo and red walls of Li Ling's banquet were burned down, and he himself disappeared. Although we don't know exactly how it was burned, Yu went to Daming Mountain, and then the green bamboo and red walls were burned down. This matter is enough for Yu to regain control of Bingzhu Temple." He raised his eyebrows and looked at Rong Yin, trying to see some surprise on his face.

However, he was terribly disappointed. Rong Yin showed no surprise whatsoever and coldly said, "Yu Cuiwei is a formidable enemy, but a close friend."

Shengxiang stared at him for a long time before finally admitting that this person knew everything. "How do you know that the legendary 'Jade Hero' is Yu Cuiwei?"

"I don't know," Rong Yin said calmly. "But since his surname is Yu and he holds great power in Bingzhu Temple, are you not referring to the 'Ghost-Faced Demon' Yu Cuiwei?"

Shengxiang almost jumped off the flower corridor railing into the lotus pond. "Don't you find it strange that Yu Cuiwei has become Yu Daxia?" He stared at Rong Yin as if he had seen a ghost.

Rong Yin finally frowned slightly, his gaze turning cold and sharp. "Everyone has their own face. How do I know that the 'Ghost-Faced Demon' is incapable of upholding justice?" He paused for a moment, then said calmly, "Besides, very few people around you can act according to common sense. It's not surprising that they do whatever they want."

Shengxiang grabbed her sleeve and tried to strangle herself, yelling, "Why can't you act normally when you're around me? I'm clearly upright, tolerant, generous, kind, considerate, and gentle beyond compare, so why is it that you can do anything without feeling surprised when you're around me?"

He was making a series of strange noises when Rong Yin whispered, "Silence!"

He quickly dodged, and with a "snap," Shengxiang opened his folding fan, fanning himself a few times with a smile on his lips.

After a while, Xiaoyun rushed over from the opposite garden. "Young master, Taibo said there's a person lying on the back door with blood on him. The master isn't here. What should we do? Should we report it to the authorities?" Xiaoyun's face was full of fear. She had never seen anything like this in her fifteen years of life.

Shengxiang exclaimed, "Ah!" and asked, "What did Steward Bi say?"

"The steward said the man wasn't dead yet, so they dragged him into the courtyard. Otherwise, they were afraid that too many people would be watching at the gate, which would have a bad influence on the family," Xiaoyun said. "The steward also said that the man was carrying a letter, which seemed to be... seemed to be for the young master."

Shengxiang exclaimed "Ah!" again, "I'll go see, I'll go see!" He followed Xiaoyun and dashed towards the back gate of the Lantern-Visiting Courtyard, looking as excited as if he had suddenly discovered a new game.

Rong Yin waited until they were out of sight before stepping out from the side of the flower corridor. He slowly looked up at the autumn sky, the fallen leaves fluttering, and the treetops a desolate sight. Had someone delivered a message to Sheng Xiang? In any case, the consequences of Sheng Xiang's trip into the martial world were immeasurable... and unlikely to end well.

Shengxiang quickly spotted the legendary man covered in blood and bearing a letter; he was lying at the entrance of the woodshed in the Lantern-Visiting Courtyard. Bi Jiuyi, the chief steward of the Prime Minister's residence, stood to one side with a frown. Seeing Shengxiang rush out excitedly, Bi Jiuyi's frown deepened. "Young Master..."

"Where's the letter? Where's the letter?" Sheng Xiang asked with great interest. "This is the first time I've ever received such a strange letter. Old Bi, where's the letter?"

Bi Jiuyi pointed to the man's back. Shengxiang looked closely and saw that the man was dressed in white with a few lines of blood writing on his back: "Words to the young master of the mansion, to meet guests at Liang Garden at sunset."

Bi Jiuyi said in a deep voice, "Young Master must not go. This matter must be reported to the authorities."

Shengxiang looked at the man's face and exclaimed, "Wow, isn't that Young Master Jiang from next door?"

The injured man on the ground groaned in pain and nodded.

"How did you get slashed and turn into a letter?" Shengxiang asked curiously, then suddenly realized, "I know, it's because you were wearing white clothes, and they slashed you to use your blood to write on."

Young Master Jiang, lying on the ground, nodded weakly, "I...I don't know who it is...he's behind me..."

Shengxiang looked at him with infinite sympathy and murmured to herself, "This story tells us that if you're not a great hero, don't wander around in white clothes, or you might accidentally turn into a letter written in blood."

"Young Master, you absolutely must not go to the Liang Garden appointment." Seeing that Sheng Xiang seemed not to have heard what he had just said, Bi Jiu couldn't help but repeat himself.

"I'm not going." Shengxiang was more obedient than anyone else. "I'm afraid of dying."

Bi Jiuyi was slightly relieved. "We must wait for Master to return..."

"Steward, at the front gate... another person has been slashed at the front gate..."

Taibo rushed in through the main gate of the Fangdeng Temple in a panic, almost tripping. "Another man in white has been slashed at the front gate, and these words are still on his back. What should we do?"

Bi Jiu was taken aback. Taibo was followed by two servants carrying another man in white. Sheng Xiang didn't recognize this man in white; he was just a random passerby. He looked exactly like Young Master Jiang, and twelve characters were written on his back.

"Who...who is doing this outside the Prime Minister's residence?" Bi Jiu was furious. "Send twenty servants to guard the front and back gates. If anyone injures someone at the gate again, arrest them immediately and report them to the authorities!"

Shengxiang shrank back, sensing that something terrible was about to happen.

Sure enough, as the sun was setting that day, the Prime Minister's residence received a total of four "blood letters." In addition to the two letters sent through the front and back gates, two more were thrown in directly from outside the wall. They were all written by passersby dressed in white who were passing by the Prime Minister's residence, and each letter had the twelve characters written on its back. Judging from the handwriting, all four "blood letters" were written by the same person.